Amy Robsart, the wife of Queen Elizabeth's favourite Robert Dudley, was found dead at the foot of some stairs at Cumnor, Oxfordshire, on 8 September 1560. Did she fall and break her neck, as the coroner's jury concluded? Was she ill? Did she jump? Was she pushed? Was she murdered, as many people suspected – at the time and since – and who were the killers? This vivid biography recounts her life and death in the shadow of the Tudor court, using all available documents, some for the first time. There will also for the first time be an in-depth look at the people around her, like her half-brothers, her host, or her supposed killer. The possible causes of her death, accident, suicide, murder, even illness, are discussed in context of the surviving evidence, modern statistics, and Renaissance culture. While there will never be a definite answer to the mystery of Amy's death, her life can be rescued from the myths that have grown around her over the centuries.

A modern-day woman investigates two suspicious deaths, centuries apart, in this paranormal tale based on a real-life Tudor mystery. 1560: Amy Robsart is trapped in a loveless marriage to Robert Dudley, a member of the court of Queen Elizabeth I. Surrounded by enemies and with nowhere left to turn, Amy hatches a desperate scheme to escape—one with devastating consequences that will echo through the centuries . . . Present Day: When Lizzie Kingdom is forced to withdraw from the public eye in a blaze of scandal, it seems her life is over. But she’s about to encounter a young man, Johnny Robsart, whose fate will interlace with hers in the most unexpected of ways. For Johnny is certain that Lizzie is linked to a terrible secret dating back to Tudor times. If Lizzie is brave enough to go in search of the truth, then what she discovers will change the course of their lives forever. Perfect for fans of Philippa Gregory and Kate Morton. “What a brilliant story, resonating as it does over time and space. Brava Nicola Cornick.” —Criminal Element “Cornick incorporates elements of romance and paranormal genres into a fascinating . . . historical that centers on the 16th-century death of Amy Robsart, wife of Robert Dudley, earl of Leicester. . . . The author does a good job with pacing and plot detail. Cornick’s rich mystery will serve readers well on a rainy day.” —Publishers Weekly

In 1828 Victor Hugo had just completed Cromwell, and was about to write Manon de Lorme. Cromwell was not his first drama; several years earlier he had written one: Amy Robsart. Six years had passed, and M. Hugo had entirely forgotten his first play, when the younger of his two brothers-in-law, Paul Foucher, who had a strong inclination for the stage, begged him to let him read it. But the play was not produced as the author wrote it at the age of nineteen. Victor Hugo did to Amy Robsart what he had done to Bug Jargal, and what he would have done to Cromwell, had not Talma’s death prevented its production. He modified and compressed the drama, and did not allow it to be played until he had prepared it for the stage.

Amy Robsart was the wife of Queen Elizabeth I's favourite, Robert Dudley, later Earl of Leicester. In September 1560, she was found dead, her neck broken, at the bottom of a flight of stairs at Cumnor Place. Amy was twenty-eight when she died and her marriage to Dudley had been one of great absences and loneliness. Some said she was ill, others that she was desperate. More sinister rumours talked of murder. In this book we look at Amy's unsolved death and examine who had motive to commit such a dark deed. Was it an accident, suicide or murder? The Death of Amy Robsart is the first volume in an exciting new historical true crime series from Chronos Books.

Christopher Skidmore takes a fresh look at the familiar story of a queen with the stomach of a man, steadfastly refusing to marry for the sake of her realm.